Speaking for the first time since this newspaper revealed that Dr Palmer had fired the arrow that felled the much-loved lion, Theo Bronkhorst has given a detailed account of the July 1 hunt which, he said, went wrong from the start.

The land on which Cecil was shot was a farm called Antoinette, which borders Hwange national park. It is currently occupied by Honest Ndlovu – who appeared in court alongside Mr Bronkhorst on Wednesday, but has not been charged with illegal hunting. His lawyer, Tonderai Mukuku said he may have to become a state witness against Mr Bronkhorst.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Mr Bronkhorst explained that, on the night of July 1, he was accompanied by his son Zane, also a professional hunter; his client, Dr Palmer; and a scout sent by Mr Ndlovu.

“We set off quite late, with the sun down, and found the carcass of an elephant which we dragged and moved into the long grass and used for bait,” he said. “We then established the ‘tree blind’ [a camouflaged hide made of tree branches and grass].

“Once we were established, and it was quiet, we first saw a lioness go past. And then a huge male – Cecil – came into view behind her. He was a magnificent animal.

“The client then fired using a bow and arrow, and it went away into the long grass. This was about 10 pm.”

Mr Bronkhorst said he had a sense that the lion was hit, but could not be sure.

“Bow and arrow wounds are different to gun wounds, and they don’t show much. But we couldn’t do anything that night.”

The four men went home for the night before returning to search for Cecil at dawn the next day.

“I was worried about the lion and what had happened,” said Mr Bronkhorst.

“We got there about 9am, and we found it and it was wounded, and the client then shot it, with his bow and arrow, and killed it.”

“I could not have seen the collar at night. We would never shoot a collared animal. I was devastated, and so was the client, we were both upset, and I panicked and took it off and put it in a tree.

“I should have taken it to Parks [the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlfe Management Authority], I admit that. So we did what had to be done. We took the head and skin, as the client had paid for the trophy.

“I went to Parks and reported what had happened. I wish I had taken the collar.

“We then went back to my place near Hwange. The client asked if we would find him an elephant larger than 63 pounds, [the weight of one tusk] which is a very large elephant, but I told him I would not be able to find one so big, so the client left the next day and went to Bulawayo for the night and then flew out [to Johannesburg] midday the following day.

“He was only here for a few days. He shot the lion he wanted to shoot, he paid for the trophy, which is the skull and skin. I took it to Bulawayo where we were curing it, prior to it going to a taxidermist for export to the US where it would be assembled and mounted. They do that better there then we do it here.”

Mr Bronkhorst said his lawyer advised him after the opening of the court case to hand over the head and skin to the parks authority.

“I never knew anything about Cecil, this famous lion,” he said. “I only found out from the media. I would not have known him anyway.

“There were four other collared lions shot in the same area this year. If I had been able to take the client where we were due to be, this would not have happened.”

Mr Bronkhorst started his hunting business after being violently evicted from his 1,269-hectare game farm, Southcum, near Kwekwe, in central Zimbabwe, as part of the Mugabe government’s land grab.

“I don’t want to shoot any animals. I do it because it is the only way I can earn a living,” said Mr Bronkhorst, who is married with two grown-up sons.

“I am a farmer. But I lost my farm in 2000 and I am forced to hunt, but have only done so five times in the last year. I like to lead a quiet life. I like breeding game, and am presently trying to increase the number of sable in Zimbabwe, which I am importing from Zambia.”

In the wake of the furore over Cecil, the United Nations on Thursday passed a resolution committing countries to intensify the fight against wildlife crime.

Walter Palmer on a previous hunting trip

The resolution treats the issue as an aspect of organised crime, urging law enforcement agencies to use anti-money laundering measures to go after perpetrators.

Steven Broad, Executive Director of Traffic, which monitors the trade in wildlife, said: “This is an historic day – the world has sent an unequivocal and collective signal at the highest level that ending wildlife crime is a top priority.”

His group estimates that as many as 30,000 elephants are killed each year for their ivory tusks in Africa.

Rhino poaching in South Africa last year hit a record high, when 1,215 were killed for their horns.

The UN resolution encourages countries to “adopt effective measures to prevent and counter the serious problem of crimes that have an impact on the environment, such as illicit trafficking in wildlife and wildlife products…as well as poaching.”